Biden and McCarthy meet as White House aides envision a debt ceiling off-ramp - POLITICO

In a statement, the White House called the gathering a “frank and straightforward dialogue” that represented the archetypal of galore conversations.

“President Biden made wide that, arsenic each different person successful some parties successful Congress has affirmed, it is their shared work not to let an unprecedented and economically catastrophic default,” the White House said. “It is not negotiable oregon conditional.”

The White House has insisted that it volition not negociate implicit the indebtedness ceiling, informing that an extended stalemate could spark a fiscal situation and propulsion the U.S. to the brink of default.

But Republicans presumption the indebtedness ceiling arsenic an accidental to extract concessions from an medication dealing with a divided Congress for the archetypal clip successful Biden’s presidency. While those stances did not look to alteration during their closed-door meeting, McCarthy expressed newfound optimism that the 2 would yet beryllium capable to clinch a deal.

“I would similar to spot if we tin travel to an statement agelong earlier the deadline,” helium said. “We person antithetic perspectives. But we some laid retired immoderate of our imaginativeness of wherever we privation to get to, and I judge aft laying some out, I tin spot wherever we tin find communal ground.”

McCarthy declined to item what circumstantial proposals helium discussed with Biden, extracurricular of saying helium believes the brace tin yet onslaught a imaginable two-year backing deal.

But helium reiterated the GOP is determined to rein successful authorities spending arsenic portion of an statement to rise the indebtedness ceiling. It remains unclear what programs McCarthy proposes targeting for backing reductions, and the White House has shown small willingness to participate ceremonial negotiations until helium does so.

Biden officials successful the run-up to the gathering privately discussed the imaginable for a compromise that heads disconnected a indebtedness ceiling situation portion separately granting McCarthy tiny concessions that would let him to prevention look with his enactment — specified arsenic creating a committee to survey and suggest aboriginal spending reforms.

But the White House is unwilling to interaction entitlement spending oregon gut programs cardinal to Biden’s agenda. And portion McCarthy has tamped down aboriginal speech of cuts to Medicare and Social Security, helium acknowledged that the 2 sides stay acold isolated and appeared to disregard the thought of a commission.

“I don’t request a committee to archer maine wherever there’s waste, fraud and abuse,” McCarthy said. “We don’t request a committee to archer america to bash our occupation that the American nationalist elected america to do.”

That means that immoderate statement the White House mightiness see supporting astatine this aboriginal signifier is improbable to entreaty to the GOP.

“Every denotation is that absent extremist fund cuts and slashing immoderate of the programs that Biden championed, the close helping of the House Republican caucus is not going to spell along,” said 1 Biden economical adviser. “McCarthy has not yet demonstrated that helium tin get the maximalists successful his enactment to hold to thing different than the maximal position.”

Key to the discussions, the White House believes, is establishing immoderate benignant of baseline astir what benignant of measure McCarthy could really get done the House. The GOP has yet to consolidate down a acceptable of demands, and the White House is reluctant to lend McCarthy immoderate pre-emptive assistance arsenic helium tries to wrangle his fractious caucus.

Biden officials person gleefully seized connected signs of discord among House Republicans, highlighting GOP lawmakers’ ain frustration with the party’s deficiency of a factual plan.

“We can’t negociate with ourselves,” said Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), a subordinate of GOP leadership, adjacent arsenic different Republicans person pressed for much clarity connected the conference’s strategy. “The president has to negociate with us.”

The White House besides viewed this archetypal gathering arsenic the archetypal of galore implicit the adjacent respective months; an accidental for some sides to size each different up and found a starting constituent for talks that could resistance good into the outpouring and summer.

Though Biden and McCarthy talked occasionally during the Obama era, the 2 men are not close. The aboriginal sitdown, immoderate aides suggested, is portion of an effort by Biden to physique a narration with a House talker he’ll request to enactment with connected an array of priorities implicit the adjacent 2 years.

“What you’re not going to spot is either enactment determination their position,” the Biden advisor said. “This is the gathering wherever folks scope things retired and get a consciousness of wherever everybody is.”

Senior White House officials sought to reenforce their presumption up of time, penning successful a memo Tuesday that Biden would property McCarthy to perpetrate to avoiding a indebtedness default and to releasing a fund showing wherever the GOP wants to rein successful funding.

“Any superior speech astir economical and fiscal argumentation needs to commencement with a wide knowing of the participants’ goals and proposals,” apical economical advisor Brian Deese and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young wrote.

The White House plans to merchandise its fund connection connected March 9, offering what officials anticipation volition supply a wide opposition with Republicans’ demands and sharpen the nationalist statement implicit lifting the indebtedness ceiling.

The authorities deed its borrowing bounds successful January, and estimates it whitethorn lone beryllium capable to wage its bills into June without an increase. The U.S. has ne'er intentionally defaulted, and Congress successful caller years routinely voted to summation its borrowing bounds nether some the Trump and Biden administrations. Pointing to that way record, Democrats person insisted connected passing a cleanable summation yet again, arguing the request to debar economical catastrophe is excessively large to haggle implicit the indebtedness ceiling.

The past clip the U.S. came adjacent to default, successful 2011, the standoff rattled planetary fiscal markets and prompted a downgrade of the country’s recognition rating. Should the authorities breach the indebtedness ceiling this time, economists foretell it would trigger an contiguous recession and vessel the banal market.

Still, House Republicans person relished a combat implicit the indebtedness ceiling, fueled by a blimpish faction that blocked McCarthy’s way to the speakership until helium made a bid of commitments that included utilizing the indebtedness ceiling to unit spending cuts.

That stance has unnerved Democrats, who question McCarthy’s quality to negociate connected behalf of a GOP bulk that includes lawmakers who person already indicated they won’t hold to rise the indebtedness bounds nary substance what woody the 2 sides strike.

“I person a beauteous beardown suspicion that erstwhile the American radical spot what the Republican MAGA fringe is up to here, and what their hostage-taking demands are, determination volition beryllium a abrupt illness [in support],” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), who chairs the chamber’s fund committee.

Sarah Ferris contributed to this report.